A New Beginning
by RNS Intrepidwriter
Summary: A young dragonrider is known to be a hazard in the sky when Thread falls.  After not being allowed to fly any more, he's forced into having extra practices.  Will he be able to overcome his problems?
1. Removal

**Disclaimer**: I don't know why this is always said, but I know I should say it anyways. I don't, and never will, own Pern. The only things I do claim ownership to in this story are the original characters that I've created.

**A/N**: J'ral is going to be the main character in this story, but he isn't the same person as in my other story

* * *

"Are you paying attention while in formation, J'ral?" shouted Wingleader F'nor, rider of brown Canth. "During this last Fall, you missed several big clumps of Thread, causing injuries and a couple to burrow, destroying several Benden farms. And that's not all. The three Falls before that, you missed clumps that caused injury and burrows. One of the injuries happened to be your friend, M'hal who hasn't been able to fly since."

J'ral, a young rider of brown Jameth, remained silent, not knowing how to respond. The truth was, J'ral felt, that he didn't belong in the skies while Thread fell. He has always been distracted while flying. Now that he thought about it, he didn't even deserve to be a dragonrider.

"Well, do you have anything to say about this?" F'nor asked, impatiently.

Looking up, J'ral managed to say, weakly, "No, Wingleader."

"Very well, then. As of this moment, your privileges are revoked. You will not leave this Weyr without permission and for falls you'll be helping with the firestone, but you won't be going any where. Once the hatchlings are ready to start doing drills, you'll train with them as well as the regular drills with this wing. Once you start flying better, you'll be allowed to do whatever you want. Until then, you'll only be doing what you're told to do."

"Understood, Wingleader," J'ral replied. This was no more than what he expected and less than he should've been given as far as punishment.

"Dismissed."

Silently, J'ral walked out of F'nor's weyr and took the long way down to the kitchens. He was angry that he wasn't good enough to be a proper dragonrider that he didn't talk to any one, not even to Jameth. Once he reached the kitchens, he just got some food, not knowing what it was that he got, and sat down at an empty table and immediately bolted down the food. When another rider sat across from him and two on each side, he didn't look up or acknowledge them.

"J'ral," began one of the riders, green rider F'drik, "We've heard wha-"

"Leave me alone, will you?" J'ral asked, not looking up.

"But J'ral, we wa-" brown rider W'llim started when cut off by J'ral.

"I said, leave me alone."

M'hal, rider of bronze Raloth, decided to say, "No, we won't shut up or go away. We..."

"I don't care."

"...will stay here for as long as it takes to get you to talk to us," M'hal finished over J'ral.

"Fine. Stay, but expect to stay until I'm allowed to fly, which won't be for a long time. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'll go to my weyr, which you're not allowed in.

* * *

The next morning, J'ral was woken up by Jameth, who was saying that his stomach was empty and he wanted to go hunt. He also said that there was a message he was to relay from F'nor.

_F'nor says that the wing will be practicing for an extra two hours today. We're to meet him in the bowl in one hour. Be prepared to go _between.

_Ok, Jameth. Will be ready. Good hunting, _J'ral said as his dragon glided down to the bowl and immediately killed a buck, breaking its neck swiftly and turned around to carry it off to the heights. It wasn't long before he was back, this time biting a young doe.

By the time Jameth was satisfied, J'ral was dressed in a dark brown set of cloths, close in shade to the hide of Jameth. Deciding that he had enough time before needing to be ready for practice, he went down to the kitchens and quickly ate some breakfast and drank some _k'lah_.

_Jameth, you done eating?_ he asked as he took care of the dishes.

_Yea. Will meet you over by the kitchens as soon as I finish off this wherry,_ was the reply.

_See you in a minute_.

* * *

**A/N** Well, this is all for now. Know it's short, but will make the next chapters longer.


	2. Understandings

**Disclaimer**: I don't know why this is always said, but I know I should say it anyways. I don't, and never will, own Pern. The only things I do claim ownership to in this story are the original characters that I've created.

* * *

Over three days of intense practice and one boring fall-for J'ral-had passed before F'nor went to talk to both rider and dragon. When he entered the weyr, J'ral was oiling an itchy patch of hid behind Jameth's right eye. Standing in the door to the weyr, F'nor watched in silence. It wasn't until after J'ral closed the jar to the oil that he was noticed.

"Wingleader F'nor, please, enter," J'ral said without looking straight at F'nor. "I would offer you a seat, but well..." J'ral didn't have to say why he wouldn't as the only chair in the room was covered in a wine skin and several rolled up pieces of music.

"That's ok, J'ral. I would prefer to stand," F'nor replied as he crossed into the weyr. "I'm here on unfortunate business dealing with the last three practices."

"I know, F'nor."

"I'm afraid that you won't be getting back up in the air any time in the near future," F'nor said sadly. "After three practices, you've only charred fifty percent of the 'Thread' in your zone. Half of what you missed hit other dragons while the rest was either charred by others or burrowed. As of this moment, you're not part of the active wing. You're being transferred to the reserve wing under the leadership of R'bin until such time as the weyrlings reach the point in training that they start to learn drills. After that, you're not a part of the reserve wing."

"Understood, Wingleader F'nor. After that, what happens?"

"If you've made any improvement, than you'll be accepted back in this wing. If not, than you're to return to the reserve wing," F'nor replied as he started to leave the weyr. Just before exiting, he turned around and said, "You have practice today in one hour. Suggest that you prepare your self."

"I will."

With that, F'nor turned and left the weyr, leaving J'ral standing by Jameth. He decided to start a conversation with Jameth. _I'm sorry, Jameth, for not being a better rider. Now you won't have a chance to flame Thread for a long time._

_I knew when I chose you that you weren't the best rider, J'ral_ Jameth said, turning his head to look at J'ral through his left eye. _I still think that you were the best candidate for me on the Hatching Grounds._

J'ral leaned against Jameth's right leg while thinking about what Jameth just said. _But why? We're now both disgraced. No one trusts us to fly with them in formation. What use is there for us?_

Jameth was serious when he replied, _They'll see, J'ral. Tell me, how accurate are you with predicting the patterns of a Threadfall?_

_Very,_ J'ral replied, confused. _But why does that matter if we aren't allowed to fly?_

_That's why you're always distracted during a Fall, isn't it?_

_Yes, _J'ral replied grimly. _Unfortunatly, I can't practice because it isn't a real Fall._

_We'll figure something out, won't we?_

_Yes we will. _Getting up, J'ral said, _Time to get ready for practice._

As he put the riding gear onto Jameth, J'ral thought about how he might be able to use this ability of his, but while still being able to fight Thread. Harnessing the skill could prove beneficial in Threadfall. The number of injuries could be cut back.

"Let's go, Jameth," he said after the riding gear was placed and fastened.

* * *

Sorry for another short chapter. Soon, probably next chapter, things will start to play out. 


	3. Revelations

**Disclaimer: **I don't know why I always do this, but last I checked, I'm not Anne McCaffrey or Tod McCaffrey which means I do not own Pern.

**A/N: **To answer a question raised by the person who reviewed my last chapter, the reason that J'ral doesn't catch the Thread is because he's distracted by other things going. For example, he might be distracted by something happening...wait, shouldn't say it as you'll find out later on.

* * *

Silently, the Weyrleader of Benden Weyr, F'lar, ate his breakfast of cold cereal in silence with his Weyrwoman, Lessa, F'nor and Brekke, F'nor's wife. It was on the morning of an afternoon Threadfall over Lemas Hold. The sky was going to be clear over the hold, even if it looked dark and overcast at the Weyr. 

Suddenly, a lone rider entered the kitchens, grabbing a bowl of cereal and _klah_ before going to an empty table in the corner of the kitchens. When F'lar looked over at him, he recognized him almost instantly as the rider that was placed on probation and then suspended from flying altogether. J'ral, a young man of medium height with dark brown hair and dark brown eyes. He was wearing a dark brown shirt and pants, blending in closely with his dragon's hide.

"How's he taking the probation and suspension, F'nor?" asked F'lar.

It took F'nor a while to realize who F'lar was talking about, but than realized that it was J'ral. "All right, I guess. He wasn't too surprised when I approached him last sevenday telling him of his suspension and removal from my wing. He knew that it was coming and wasn't too concerned."

"Really?" asked Lessa. "I would've thought that he would've tried to resist what was happening and stay with the wing. Never seen anyone take it the way he has."

"Know what you mean, Lessa," F'nor replied. "He just let me deliver the news and accepted it calmly. However, now that we're on the topic of J'ral, I have one thing that I want to say."

"What?" asked F'lar.

"Well, I've been reviewing all the Falls he's participated in," began F'nor. "You'd think that he would've been injured the way he's been flying, but he hasn't. But then, I remembered something else. He warned B'son when a patch was about to hit him when there shouldn't have been. While flying on the other side of the formation with a different wing."

"How could he? No one can tell when something like that's going to happen when in a different region of sky."

"That's not the only time, F'lar. He told Canth to jump _between_ when his part of the formation was flying below us, saying that a dragon higher up missed a patch, almost scoring us. Luckily, Canth went _between_ in time without questioning Jameth. If he hadn't, I would've been badly scored."

F'lar was stunned by what his brother just told him. "How come you never mentioned this to me before now?"

"Never occurred to me to tell you about some instances like this. I just put them down as random incidents when they occurred. Now, reviewing all of them, I'm not so certain.

"Go over to him, F'nor, and ask him to please join us for a little discussion."

"Ok, F'lar," F'nor said, getting up and walking over to J'ral.

J'ral was eating his meal when he noticed out the corner of his eye that F'nor had gotten up from the table that he was sitting at and started to come towards him. He had no clue as to what F'nor wanted as he was no longer in F'nor's wing.

_Jameth_, he said to his dragon, _F'nor's coming over to me. Don't know what he wants, so I may be here for a little longer than I was planning._

_Well, in that case I'll go sun myself. Let me know when you're done talking to him._

_I will,_ J'ral said just as F'nor got to his table. Aloud, he said, "Wingleader F'nor, how may I help you?"

"F'lar would like to talk to you over at his table if that'll be convenient for you."

"Of course it is," J'ral replied. While he was planning on leaving soon, no one could argue if F'lar asked you to join him. It was pretty much an order if he asked you to do something.

"Well, better not keep the Weyrleader waiting," F'nor said, heading back to the table he was sitting at.

It was a minute before J'ral got up as he wanted to finish his _klah_. F'nor was half ways to his table before J'ral got up and started walking to the table, still wondering what this was all about. There wasn't any reason that the Weyrleader would want to punish him as F'nor already punished him enough.

"Weyrleader, Weyrwoman, Wingleader F'nor, Brekke," he said when he got to their table, "how may I help you?"

"Please, sit down," F'lar said, pointing to a chair at the end of the table. When he did so, F'lar continued. "F'nor has just been talking to us about certain actions that occurred during several Threadfalls."

"Really, Weyrleader?"

"Yes, J'ral. Just how did you know that B'son was about to be hit by Thread while on the other side of the formation? And just how did you know that a dragon missed a patch of Thread above F'nor when you were flying under him?"

"Uh," J'ral said, not knowing what to say. "I have no clue, Weyrleader. You see, in both instances, and several others that F'nor hasn't mentioned yet, I was concentrating on the Fall, not knowing what was going on with other wings except for those around us. Suddenly, I just had a feeling that something bad was about to happen to the people that I warned."

"Interesting," F'lar said when J'ral paused for a minute. "Can you tell us anything else?"

"Well, Weyrleader, all I can say is that I _knew_ the pattern of Threadfall without even looking at it. I could tell when something was occurring when there shouldn't have been, where bad clumps might fall, and other things. Unfortunately, I can't work on practicing that power while in the practices as we aren't battling real Thread.

"At the same time, I can't work on trying to battle Thread and using that power during practice either."

"You can feel what's going on the entire area of the Fall at the same time?"

"Yes, but it comes and goes, Weyrleader."

"Great," F'lar said excitedly. "I think there may be use for you yet, J'ral. I want you to fly today during the Fall and try to monitor the conditions as they change. Concentrate only on that and fly below the Queen's Wing. I'll make certain that the rest of the Weyr knows to follow your commands if you should happen to sense a dangerous change in the fall. Grab a sack of firestone and form up with the Queen's Wing in the center. That's where you'll fly, but far enough below that you don't get singed by the flame throwers."

"Yes, Weyrleader," J'ral said with mixed emotions. He would be allowed to fly and fight the ancient enemy, but not actively unless all the other wings missed a patch of Thread. The nice thing was, he would probably protect all the other dragons.

"Another thing, please don't call me Weyrleader, J'ral. If you can harness this power of yours, you'll be granted equal position to the Wingleaders and they can call me by my given name."

"I will when that time comes, Weyrleader. Until then, I'll still call you by your rank."

"Whatever. We meet in two hours to fly. Be ready, J'ral."

"I will be," J'ral said as he got up from where he was. To Jameth, he said, _Jameth, you ready to fly?_

_I'm always ready, J'ral. I told you that everything would work out fine in the end, but you didn't believe me._

_I did somewhat. Meet me over by the kitchens in a minute. I'm getting another cup of _klah_ before flying._

_

* * *

_

So, what did you think? Like it, hate it? Please tell me so I can try to fix it.


	4. Fall

Why do I do this when it's obvious that Pern isn't mine and it never will be.

* * *

At the appointed time, the whole Weyr was waiting along the rim and the bowl, waiting for the signal from F'lar to give the dragons firestone and to take off. Finally, the signal was given and as one, all the fighting dragons, even J'ral's Jameth, gave a lump of firestone. 

J'ral was stationed right behind Lessa and between the two junior weywomen. He knew that one piece of firestone wouldn't give Jameth the needed flame, so he gave a second piece. After Jameth chewed the second piece of firestone, he lifted his head and angled it so he wouldn't hit Lessa or Ramoth with his flame. A couple seconds after he finished the firestone, flame erupted between his jaws, extending about a half dragonlenght.

_Nice flame, Jameth_, J'ral said to his dragon. All around them, other dragons were flaming. _Now all we have to do is wait until the signal comes. Any new orders?_

_No, J'ral. Nothing new_, Jameth said. Suddenly F'lar's hand raised in the signal for takeoff. _We go now._

As one, the dragons took flight. After a minute of flying, the wings formed up in their normal formations with J'ral and Jameth flying several dragonlengths under the Queen's Wing. They continued to fly like this for another few minutes, giving each rider time to accurately visualize their intended destination with how things were looking.

_J'ral, we've got a visualization that F'lar wants us to use,_ Jameth said as he shared the image.

_Concentrate real hard on it_ J'ral said as he focused on preparing to use his ability. At that time, F'lar signaled the Weyr to go _between_.

* * *

The skies above Lemos Hold were as clear as was predicted. There wasn't any indication that Thread was about to fall, but J'ral knew that it was._ Jameth, tell Mnementh that Thread will begin falling in three minutes._

_I will_, Jameth replied. Immediately he said_ Mnementh says that F'lar thanks you. Do you know where it will start?_

_No, unfortunately,_ J'ral said after a moment of deep concentration.

When the Thread started falling, it fell right on top of the lead wing. _F'lar, Thread will fall right on top of your wing. You might want to back off_, J'ral warned a few seconds before Thread started falling.

And that was the beginning of one of J'ral's busiest Falls ever. Every couple of minutes he was giving out warnings. However, despite all of his best efforts, J'ral missed a patch of Thread coming dangerously close to a dragon and its rider. Ten people had to jump _between_ to the Weyr to get patched up.

After the halfway point of the Fall, J'ral was starting to get tired out. He couldn't concentrate as much on the Fall. _Jameth, please warn Mnementh that he's flying straight into where a patch of Thread will fall in a second._

_Yes, J'ral_, Jameth replied as he relayed the message. _Mnementh thanks you. Canth flew right where he was flying and flamed the Thread. It was a big patch and most likely would've sent F'lar to the Weyr to be treated_.

J'ral was only half listening to the other dragons, concentrating of the Thread. That was when he realized that there was a big hole right above the Queen's Wing for Thread to get through, which it did. _Someone needs to fly above this area._ As he was saying that, the Thread fell right on top of the Queen's Wing, which jumped out as one.

Jameth was about to follow when J'ral felt pain all over his body. He barely even noticed Jameth going _between_. When they came out, they were above the Weyr and Jameth began the quickest decent he could while carrying an injured rider. When he landed, J'ral was unconscious.

The weyrhealer grimaced when he looked at the rider on the latest pair to land. The dragon was also badly injured, but it was the rider he was most concerned about. There were several bad scores on him, one going down his left cheek, two on his right arm and one on his left, one going down his left leg and one going down his chest.

"Get him off the dragon quickly, but carefully. He's badly injured. I will personally work on him. Martha, you'll lead the rest of the healers for now when you get more injuries."

"Ok," she said as they weyrhealer bent down over the dragonrider.


	5. The Aftermath, Part 1

According to a reviewer, the chapter didn't show up, so I've added the chapter again, hoping that it will work. Don't know why it didn't, though ff dot net hasn't been behaving correctly for me. It's taken over a day for then to send me alerts for when another chapter has been added for a story I have alerts out for. Anyone else having problems like that?

* * *

F'lar was pacing nervously back and forth in front of the Weyr's infirmary. Inside rested thirty people from this latest Fall-including J'ral and three others who were in a critical condition. It was just hours after the Fall ended.

After J'ral left, there was much confusion among the dragonriders. In just a short time, they were used to his voice as the watcher of the dragonriders, there to tell them when Thread was about to fall. Once he was injured, no one was prepared, not even F'lar. He, too, had started getting used to his voice.

Now F'lar blamed himself for what happened. He knew he shouldn't have pushed J'ral into action yet. The Weyr should've had practice with him giving warnings before today's Fall.

"F'lar," said a voice from behind the pacing dragonrider. He turned around seeing Lessa standing just outside the door to the infirmary. She had been among the helpers after the Fall, tending to the riders in a critical condition. "J'ral is going to make it. If Jameth had been just a second slower, they would've both gone _between_."

"Th-That's good news," F'lar said. He was still thinking about the Fall. "How about the others?"

"Not as good. K'ane is the worse of the three. His left eye is not going to be functional any more and his right is going to need time to heal, but he won't be able to fly Thread any more. J'anthen will need time to recover, but in time he might recover fully. A thick patch of Thread fell on his right arm, destroying much of his muscles in his upper arm. Finally, B'son is actually in the best condition. He'll need only a couple sevendays to recover from the scores he's received."

"And the others. They'll just need the usual couple of days?"

"Yes, F'lar." It was at that moment that she saw his expression. "Have you slept at all since the Fall ended?"

"What?" F'lar asked. "Well…no, I haven't. not with so many on the injured list. And J'ral." I keep thinking, 'Did I make the right choice? Sending him up the way I did? With no practice with the rest of the Weyr?'"

"I don't know, F'lar," she replied, placing an arm around him. "Let's go to the weyr and get some rest. You look like you could use it."

F'lar sighted, agreeing with her. He knew she was right, after all. "I think I should. Maybe we will be able to think better tomorrow."

As the sun started to rise the next morning, F'lar woke up first. He couldn't remember why he was disturbed by something, but it slowly came back to him. J'ral…the Fall…fellow dragonriders injured…K'ane permanently out of action…

"F'lar?" Lessa asked softly from the bed. She had noticed that he was awake. "Are you still thinking about what happened yesterday?"

"Yes, Lessa," replied F'lar as he quickly gathered clean cloths and prepared to get cleaned up. "After I get something to eat, I'll talk with the wingleaders. We have to know exactly what happened yesterday when J'ral went out of action. I _know_ the wings know how to fly in an unpredictable Fall.

"Before J'ral's injuries forced him to land at the Weyr, there was only one, minor score. The rider didn't even have to go to the Weyr for treatment. Suddenly, just moments after he warned the Queen's Wing about a patch of Thread, which scored him, we had people do careless maneuvers, causing dragons and riders to receive scores."

He didn't even wait to hear a response from Lessa before heading to the bath. He was just concentrating on a conversation his dragon was trying to engage him in. _F'lar, I've spoken to the dragons of the injured riders. All report the same thing. When J'ral went out of action, confusion reigned among the Wingleaders in all Wings except for yours, F'nor's and the Queen's Wing._

_I know, Mnementh,_ F'lar responded quietly. _I need to find out _why_ the Wings got into a complete state of confusion. And for that, I personally need to have a conference with all the Wingleaders._

_I've informed all the dragons for the Wingleaders. By now, they're informing their riders._

_Have the riders meet me in the main conference room in one hour._

_It shall be done._

As Mnementh's voice fell silent, F'lar got lost in thought, going over the whole Fall in his mind. At first, there was a slight bit of confusion as riders realized that someone other than their Wingleader or F'lar was giving instructions to them.

But within a few minutes, before the Fall started to grow unpredictable, all the riders settled into a fluid motion as Wingleader, Weyrleader, and J'ral gave instructions. J'ral's were more like warnings, but each rider took them seriously. It was remarkable that only one light scoring had occurred by the halfway point in the Fall.

That was when the confusion started. F'lar didn't know really what was happening in the other Wings, but he knew something was up. Within ten minutes, three more riders were seriously injured and many others. Luckily, after that point all the Wings were starting to fly normally.

_F'lar, Lessa's starting to get worried. You've been in their for close to an hour_, Mnementh said suddenly.

_Shards, must've gotten too deep in thought. Inform the Wingleaders that I shall be a little longer. The meeting will be pushed back half an hour._

_Of course, F'lar._

F'lar automatically got himself dressed and saw Lessa waiting outside the main room, on the landing with Ramoth. Not even his Mnementh was larger than the Queen, whom took up most of the ledge. Mnementh was partially inside the cave, facing the gold dragon. He soon got up, sensing F'lar approaching.

"F'lar, it's about time that you got here. Was starting to get worried about you," Lessa said, giving her dragon one last caress before getting up and walking over to F'lar. "If I hadn't asked Mnementh to get you, would you still be in the bath?"

"Sorry, Lessa, but I was just reviewing the Fall yesterday before going to the meeting. Didn't realize how long it took."

"I see. Well, you better get something to eat. Luckily I thought to order some food to be brought up," Lessa said.

She led him to the table, which F'lar saw was loaded with bread and fruit, as well as some _klah_. He quickly bolted down some food and _klah_ before getting up.

"Thanks, Lessa," he said just before leaving for the meeting room.

When he arrived, he was not the first one there. Already F'nor and several Wingleaders were waiting for him. Not soon after entering, the rest arrived in a group.

"Thank you all for coming on such sort notice, even though you probably expected a meeting," F'lar said, causing several heads to nod. "Before I get started, I would like to say that your wings flew great the first half of the Fall. Only one score, and not a bad one at that. You also responded well to J'ral's warnings.

"However, the real reason for this meeting is what happened in the ten or so minutes after J'ral got injured. After that point, only three wings-mine, F'nor's, and the Queen's-flew to near top performance. All the rest of you flew like green wings. What happened?"

There was silence all round the table before one of the men gathered, the Wingleader of one of the newer Wings, spoke up. "F'lar, forgive me for saying this, but weren't we all expecting J'ral to protect us all?"

"Yes, but that's not the point, is it?" F'lar yelled. "Your Wing was the worst of all. Only three people in your _entire_ wing escaped without getting scored-one of which, K'ane, will never be able to fight Thread again! He's done, with only partial eyesight in one of his eyes. The other's gone."

"You're exaggerating, F'lar. There were ten of us that made it through the entire Fall."

"Only because the remaining riders were lightly scored and could make it through. Last night, Lessa told me everyone who was injured and what wing they were in."

"What are you talk-"

"Get out of here," F'lar said sternly. "You have no right being with a group of Wingleaders. As of this moment, you're removed from your capacity as Wingleader. Wingsecond F'lesson will take over from here on out."

"You ca-" the ex-Wingleader was starting to cry out when F'lar yelled again, "Get out now!" He didn't move, causing the Wingleaders next to him, F'nor and M'kal, to force him out of the room.

During this time, F'lar said to _Mnementh, please have Golanth's rider join us in this meeting,_

_He's on his way_, Mnementh replied.

"Sorry about this," F'lar said to the Wingleaders, who were all not too surprised about what just occurred. They knew it was going to happen eventually as the former Wingleader was a lazy, incompetent Wingleader.

"Don't worry, F'lar," said F'nor. "At least we've removed the problem which caused confusion among that Wing. The former Wingleader probably was glad that he didn't have to give as much warnings about Thread, thanks to J'ral."

"F'lar," M'kal said quietly, "I fear that I had a similar problem, but not to the degree as the other person. However, I recognize my mistake, even though it cost me a fine Wingsecond, J'anthen. How long will he be out?"

"I don't know, M'kal," F'lar replied sadly, but proud that M'kal admitted his mistake. He knew that M'kal wouldn't let what happened occur ever again. "Lessa doesn't know how long. He'll need to grow a lot of new muscles in his upper right arm before he'll be fit to fly. Probably several months."

At this point, a young dragonrider entered the room. Everyone recognized him immediately as F'lar's one and only son, F'lesson. "Wingleaders, F'lar," he said to the assembled group. "I'm here as asked, F'lar and I don't see my Wingleader with the rest of you. May I assume that you asked me here to fill his place for the meeting?"

"Yes, F'lesson, though not just for the meeting. As of now, you're the Wingleader of your Wing. The previous Wingleader's just been dismissed for continued incompetence and laziness."

"As you wish, F'lar. May I fill you in on the events of the Fall yesterday, as I saw them? The other Wingseconds will back me up, along with the rest of the Wing."

"Go a head," F'lar said.

For the next half an hour, F'lesson told the assembled group what had happened after J'ral was injured. When the Wingleader realized that J'ral had left the Fall for good, he grew silent in giving orders. F'lesson and K'ane started giving orders to their parts of the wing. The Wingleader did nothing, causing the rest of the Wing to follow the Wingseconds in charge of their group.

"That's what happened. Once K'ane left for the Weyr due to injury, I became the unofficial Wingleader. The true Wingleader still did nothing. As you know, once K'ane left, our performance changed dramatically. But the damage was done. All but nine others, including the Wingleader, stayed through the rest of the Fall, but only three of us left unscored."


	6. The Aftermath, Part 2

Please tell me what you think of this story. So far I've only had one person review multiple times.

* * *

It was five days after the Fall in which J'ral was injured severely. During those five days, he wasn't allowed to leave the healing hall, though he hasn't felt like leaving for the most part. Only in the last day has he been able to get up and move around the healing hall without too much pain. 

He was currently resting when F'lar and F'nor entered the hall. The two of them headed over to his bed after taking a quick look around the rest of the hall. Only four beds other than his were occupied. One of the fellow patients would be released after the end of the day. The other three would be longer.

"J'ral," began F'lar once he was by the bed and noticed that J'ral was awake, but resting. "I'm glad to see that you're better. Any idea on how long you'll be here?"

When J'ral answered, he didn't look at F'lar or F'nor. "Weyrleader, I do not know how much longer I'll be here. It will be until the Weyrhealer decides to release me." Now he opened up his eyes to look at his visitors. "F'lar, I know that it won't be too much longer. The majority of my scores have healed well enough and didn't get infected."

F'lar was relived to hear this. He needed to know so that he could schedule a way for the whole Weyr to practice as a whole with J'ral issuing commands the way he does in the real Fall. "Well, we need you as soon as we can, J'ral. Before you went out of action during the last Fall, we only had one scoring, and a mild one at that. By that point in time, I normally would have at least one person seriously injured and several that had to return to the Weyr for quick treatments before going back out. What we need to do is try to find a way to prevent what happened last time, should you ever go out of action."

Unknown to F'lar, J'ral had been contemplating this ever since the Fall and he knew what happened to the rest of the Weyr. "F'lar, I've been thinking about it a lot. I feel that we need to practice as a whole any conceivable way that I would get taken out so that the rest of the Weyr knows."

"I know, J'ral. It's just that we can't until you're better."

"No, you can," J'ral said, drawing a surprised look from F'lar. "I don't need to be there for you to practice an incident like that. If Jameth's up to it, he can fly for a minute than jump _between_ saying that J'ral's injured and is out for the rest of the Fall."

"Hmm," F'lar said thoughtfully, "you might be right. I'll have to think about it."

"That's an excellent idea," said F'nor. "I think I know some ways to put a practice together with this in mind." Turning to J'ral, he asked, "Any idea how long until Jameth's healed enough?"

"No, but I can ask," J'ral said as he asked Jameth, _How long until you're healed enough for a short flight?_

_One more day before I'm allowed brief flights lasting no more than ten minutes. A sevenday before I can fly the length of a Fall._

_Thanks. Would you mind doing brief practices with the Weyr, pretending that I'm injured and am out for the rest of the Fall?_

_That wouldn't be a problem, I don't think._

"Jameth says that starting tomorrow he'll be able to do short, ten minute flights. Also, there won't be a problem with him practicing with the Weyr."

"Good," was all F'lar said before leaving the side of the bed.

As F'lar and F'nor left the healer hall, they walked down the narrow passage way to the kitchens. Inside, there was the confused chatter as most of the Weyr was eating inside. At several tables, F'lar could tell that some Wingleaders were having informal meetings with members of their Wings. F'lesson was one, talking to a young female with the shoulder knots of a green rider.

"F'lesson," F'lar said as he passed by the table, "if you have a minute, I would like to talk with you quickly."

"I'll be a minute, F'lar," replied F'lesson as he looked up from the conversation he was in. "Sarie and I were just discussing the training flight."

"Understood. F'nor and I'll be at our normal table."

As F'lar finished speaking, he started off towards a table along the wall on the far side of the kitchens. Due to its unique position, it was well lit during the majority of the day. During the morning, the light came in from the opening of the cavern and in the afternoon and early evening, the light entered from a small opening in the rocks from above. Because of this, it has often been used by the Weyrleaders from as far back as Benden has been around.

While he was waiting for F'lesson, F'lar served himself some wherry sandwiches that were made from a grilled wherry from last night's dinner. He also served himself a glass of klah from the pitcher on the table.

"F'lar, may I ask what you need me for?" asked F'lesson as he sat down opposite F'lar and F'nor.

"Certainly," replied F'lar. "I've just been talking to J'ral. He came up with the same idea as we did for practicing with his ability. He won't be able to fly for another sevenday, but his dragon can fly quickly-enough to pretend that J'ral's been too injured to fly."

F'lesson gave this a moments thought before replying to F'lar. "I think this can work well enough, F'lar. Unfortunately, you don't think that the rest of the Wingleaders will agree to this, right?"

"Correct. What I want to do is start off with practicing with your Wing and F'nor's and mine and then slowly work the rest of the Wings in. Tomorrow Jameth can fly for a short amount of time, so I want your Wing to be ready to fly just after the midday meal."

"Well…I guess my Wing'll have double practice tomorrow as I've assigned them an early morning practice session. Need to fix what that lazy Wingleader M'lan did. We're so terrible that I'm surprised that we're even able to fly in formation for more than a minute."

"Just don't wear them out too much."

"I won't." When F'lar still looked uncertain, F'lesson repeated, "I won't, F'lar. I swear, I'll make certain that they aren't worn out at all."


	7. Wing Practice

Thank you all that've reviewed. This story's getting a little difficult for me. Know what I want to do, but don't know how I'm going to get there. Hmm, seems like one of my other stories. Also, if you've read my other Pern story, Redemption, I'm planning on adding another chapter real soon.

Btw, I don't think I'm Anne McCaffrey.

* * *

As F'lar watched silently, the last dragon and its rider fell into the Wing's formation. Spread out along the Bowl were the three Wings of F'lar, F'nor, and F'lesson. Each Wing was spread out in a V formation with the Wingleader in front, except for in the case of F'lar's Wing which didn't have the point. Inside each formation was a smaller V of ten dragons, mostly green but in some cases blue or brown. 

All of the riders were mounted on their dragons with a pouch of firestone hanging down from the neck of each dragons. F'lar knew that they would remain like they were for as long as needed, but he felt that wasting anymore time would be pointless, even though everyone was present a full ten minutes ahead of time.

"Riders," F'lar said in a loud, booming voice, "we are practicing as a group today because I feel that the Weyr as a whole needs to be prepared for anything. Unfortunately, during last Fall, we lost a valuable member of the fighting Wings, which resulted in mass confusion. F'nor and myself have discussed ways to prevent it from happening again, which we're going to be practicing today, along with some multiple wing tactics."

"F'lar," called a Wingsecond of F'lar's Wing when F'lar fell silent, "what sort of preventative measures are we going to be practicing?"

"F'dric, we're going to be doing various exercises over the next sevenday," responded to the Wingsecond. F'dric was an old rider with grey streaks forming in his black hair. He was a rider long before F'lar Impressed Mnementh, but was still a very good rider. "Today we're going to be practicing any scenario that would cause J'ral and Jameth to drop out of a Fall. Jameth's been cleared for quick flights, so he'll be joining us in a short while."

As he watched all the riders expressions as he spoke, he felt regret that J'ral wouldn't be here to practice with the Wings. _Mnementh_, he thought to the dragon after he finished speaking, _have the dragons be prepared for my signal to launch._

_They're ready, F'lar_, replied Mnementh after a moment.

With one last look at the dragons and their riders, F'lar gave the ancient signal for the dragons to take off. As one, all the dragons spread their wings for the most important down stroke. F'lar could feel Mnementh's muscles strain as he lifted off the ground. After the third stoke, Mnementh began to relax as he had overcome the pull of gravity and could fly higher easier, though the wing muscles had to fight for every dragonlength of altitude.

After a minute's flight, each Wing had settled into a loose fighting formation. Each dragon was a dragonlenght below the one in front of them and at least two dragonlenghts behind and half a dragonlenth to either side. The smaller, ten dragon groups took position below the main Wing, there to make certain that Thread didn't get missed. Each Wing had a different altitude to patrol: F'lar's was the highest, F'lesson's below and behind, and F'nor's was below F'lesson's and ahead of F'lar's.

_Ok, Mnementh, let's start the drills, shall we? _asked F'lar.

Mnementh took a moment before responding, _I've alerted the Wingleaders and asked Miklath to send the weyrlings up to start dumping "Thread."_

_Good._

Without warning, a group of weyrlings appeared above F'lar, having been waiting long before F'nor ever told the Weyrlingmaster K'lon, rider of blue Miklath, to send them up to dump the "Thread," small silver ropes that looked like Thread. F'lar didn't have to warn the Wing that Thread was falling-each rider had already seen the Thread and urged their dragons to attack in a normal manner. At once, the Wings broke up into different flights among each Wingsecond and concentrated on different parts of the sky, spreading out to clearly cover the patrol zone.

After half an hour of practice in which very little Thread managed to get through the three Wings, F'lar had a selected group of riders that communicated directly to Jameth on where they were going to drop Thread take flight. He didn't warn the Wingleaders or Wingseconds except to inform them that Jameth will be taking charge of warning when Thread will cause them danger. F'lar had Mnementh relay to the dragons and riders as a whole that Jameth would be coming up shortly.

* * *

As Jameth took flight, he contacted the group of dragons whom would be dropping Thread where he wanted them to. _Joleth, Kameth, I would like the two of you to drop Thread onto the Weyrleader as soon as I join the fighting. I'll tell you when._

_Our riders have been informed and are waiting for your arrival._

_Good. Tolath, I would like you to dump a really thick patch of Thread right onto Wingleader F'lesson seconds after I warn F'lar about the danger he'll be in. Malath, you're going to be the one that puts me out of action. I'll be flying below Wingleader F'nor. I want you to put a very thick patch of Thread that forces the entire Wing _between_ on my order. Put it as close as you can to the Wing._

_My rider will happily do this,_ replied Malath, a green dragon.

By this time, Jameth was approaching the patrol zone and could see the flames of the dragons practicing quite clearly. _Ok, Joleth and Kameth, I'm approaching the practice zone._ As he entered the formation, he said to Mnementh, _Mnementh, inform F'lar that I'm here and am ready to do my part._

_Welcome, Jameth. F'lar says that he's happy that you're here and wishes you to proceed with your drills._

_Happily, Mnementh._ Changing to his group of dragons, he said, _Joleth and Kameth, you may proceed._

_Proceeding, Jameth_ came the happy reply from Joleth, a young brown whose rider was a good friend of J'ral's.

_Mnementh, there's a big patch of Thread falling right on top of you._

_We see, thanks for the warning_, replied Mnementh as the front of the Weyrleader's Wing made a short hop _between_ while the second half of the Wing closed together and formed a new V and promptly charred the Thread that fell right on top of them. As soon as the Thread was cleared, Mnementh and his group of dragons and riders rejoined the rest of the Wing, which promptly resumed formation.

Jameth didn't have time for watching as just after he warned the Weyrleader, Tolath reported that he was performing his part. _Golanth, inform the riders in the back of your Wing that there's Thread falling back there._

_I've informed them and they're evading. I'm jumping _between_ with the front part of the Wing to flame the Thread._

_Good. Solath, I would like you to make a drop over F'lesson's secondary Wing formation._

_Will do._

_Jolanth, there's a patch of Thread that got through F'lesson's main Wing formation. It's heading on top of you._

_See it and it's flamed._

_Malath, it's time for you to do your part._

_Understood._

_F'nor, there's a thick patch of Thread right above you. Jump _between_ now and have your secondary Wing take care of it._

_Understood_.

With that, his Wing went _between_ and Jameth took a second longer and felt the ropes hit his wings and back. He jumped _between_ over the Weyr and began the long spiral down to land. _Mnementh, inform the Wings that I've suffered severe scoreing to the wings and back. I'm out for the remainder of the Fall._

* * *

Two hours after the beginning of practice, F'lar had the Wings land. During the course of the practice, there were only five "scores," of which three were severe enough for the dragons to land at the Weyr. 

"Good practice, everyone. I was pleased with the results of the practice. We had results with how the Wings handled the three times that we had Jameth up here. Only after the first time that he got lost did it come close to not being business as usuall. Unfortunately, you knew that he would be forced to land, so I'll have to find a way to fix that, eventually.

"You're all dismissed, except for K'lar, W'kin, and Marisa. I would like to chat with the three of you before you leave. All three Wings will practice again tomorrow. I might be adding in R'bin's Wing for the practice, too. Same time, but meet me along the rim."

A chorus of "Yes, F'lar's" echoed around the Bowl as riders either flew to their weyrs or did other things. Within minutes, the whole Bowl was empty except for the three riders that F'lar had asked to meet with him.

"F'lar, I'm assuming that you would like to find out what happened to us when we got hit by Thread," said K'lar, the rider of bronze Jolanth. He was hit shortly after Jameth left for the first time.

"Correct."

"Sir, I just didn't pay attention well enough. I thought that F'lesson and Golanth had flamed some Thread, but at least three strands got through and hit Jolanth on his right wing. It was a careless mistake and could've been disastrous during a real Fall."

"Correct, K'lar. You're normally not one to do things like that, which is why you lead the secondary formation, which could be considered a Wing in some aspects." Looking at the other two, he included, "All three of you are great riders. Normally you don't get scored. I would hate for careless mistakes ending your life. Dismissed."


End file.
